Investigations continue into fatal Dunedin fire

An autopsy will be conducted today on the victim of a fatal house fire in Dunedin on Friday night.

Detective Sergeant Dylan Ross said police were continuing to investigate the cause of the fire on Nutsford St, in the suburb of Brockville.

A scene examination had taken place, however, cordons and scene guards would remain while police continued their inquiries, Ross said. One person died in the fire, and neighbours reportedly tried to rescue the occupant of the flat.

Emergency services were called to the property just after midnight. When crews arrived, they found one unit in a block of four was well ablaze, Fire and Emergency NZ southern communications shift manager Riwai Grace said. A per- son was found dead in the unit.

An occupant of another of the flats said he heard glass smashing, and he went outside to check.

‘‘The heat was so intense. It was very fast. We heard things banging and exploding. Pop, pop. Bang, bang. It was almost like Guy Fawkes night,’’ the man, who did not want to be identified, said.

‘‘Four or five people tried to get in but the whole thing was so involved, so they just didn’t have a show,’’ he said.

Neighbour Ngatuaine Taana said a middle-aged man who needed a wheelchair lived alone in the unit.

Fire and Emergency NZ said the fire was restricted to the one unit, but the other units were evacuated and there was a lot of smoke.